When you pick up your motorhome during winter in Auckland, don’t be shy to ask for a few extra blankets! Companies such as Apollo Motorhome Holidays have built their motorhomes to suit cold weather, and they are fully insulated with comfortable heating to ensure your nights don’t get too chilly.

Of course Auckland is beautiful in the sunshine, but even grey skies offer a dramatic backdrop to this harbour city’s best attractions. To stay warm, wear layers of clothes on top of each other. Taking moderate-fast paced walks around will keep the blood pumping, and you simply cannot visit the city without doing at least one circuit around the harbour.

Auckland and its surrounds offer plenty of ways to warm up (or cool down even more).

Warm up:

Sink into Hot Pools
Warm up in beautiful natural thermal pools, among the native bush and hills of the Waiwera valley. Temperatures in the outdoor and indoor thermal pools start from 30 degrees Celsius and some pools are filled with water as warm as 40 degrees Celsius so you will definitely lose that chilly winter feeling. There are slides and fun activities for the family, all just 35 minutes from Auckland city. www.waiwera.co.nz

Laugh out loud
At the Classic Comedy Bar, centrally located on Queen St in Auckland's CBD, which features a range of local and international acts up to 6 nights a week. Get an insight into New Zealand humour, or find a comedian from your home country to cheer on. www.comedy.co.nz

Cool down:

Snow Ball fight
Don’t fight winter – embrace it! The snow machines here offer perfect slopes for an indoor ski session, with all gear and lessons available, so you can get some skiing practice in around Auckland (it’s just 25 minutes from the city) before heading to the real slopes. www.snowplanet.co.nz/

Get under the sea
If you think the weather is feeling a little ‘Antarctic’, pay a visit to the cute penguins who call snow home at Kelly Tarlton’s Underwater Aquatic Centre. Travel on a fully automatic walkway under a glass dome as sharks, turtles, giant rays and other sea life swim above you. There are a number of diving and adventure experiences available here. www.kellytarltons.co.nz

Drink cool drinks
Set in Central Auckland, Minus 5 Bar (Ice Bar) is definitely a perfect winter location and one for bragging rights on instagram or Facebook! Prepare yourself for a night of high expense ($25 entry) and cool surrounds – everything in this bar is made from ice – even the glasses you drink the Vodka out of! All gear is provided to keep you warm (jackets, gloves, ugg boots).